Unfavorable weather, summer fruit crop failure

Ms. Le Kim Anh, Bau Sen hamlet, Xa Bang commune, Chau Duc district takes care of the mangosteen garden.

To produce summer fruit, farmers began to treat the trees to flower from the end of January. However, at that time, unseasonal rains appeared, causing many areas of flowering trees to fall off and not bear fruit.

The avocado garden of Mr. Vo Thach Cao, in Xa Bang commune, Chau Duc district is an example. Mr. Vo Thach Cao said that every year, his 7ha avocado garden yields about 300 tons, but this year the yield has decreased by more than 50%. "The reason for this year's avocado crop failure is that when the trees flowered, the weather was cloudy, and the rain was late, so the flowers fell. When the sun came out, I had to re-treat it, so this crop was late and the yield also decreased by more than 50%," Mr. Cao informed.

The adverse weather conditions also had a significant impact on the mangosteen garden of Ms. Le Kim Anh’s family in Bau Sen hamlet, Xa Bang commune, Chau Duc district. According to Ms. Kim Anh, the mangosteen tree bloomed in February, right when the weather was hot and sunny, alternating with unseasonal rain, causing a low fruit set rate. Even the tree was growing new leaves while nurturing fruit, so the tree was exhausted, leading to the young fruit falling off, significantly affecting productivity.

“I still take care of and process the same as every year, but this season is very difficult. The erratic weather affects the growth of the trees, especially when they flower and bear fruit. Many young fruits fall off and I don’t know how to fix it. This situation probably won’t be much when harvested. It is estimated that the yield loss is 50-60% compared to previous years,” said Ms. Kim Anh.

Many durian gardens in Long Phuoc commune, Ba Ria city also saw a 30% decrease in output compared to previous years. This year, Mr. Nguyen Van Huong's 1ha durian garden had to be treated twice to flower before fruiting. This means that the harvest time is 1 month later. "Thai durian needs about 50 days or more to stabilize and keep the fruit. Therefore, it is harvested in July, instead of late May like every year. Harvesting at this time marks the beginning of the rainy season, causing the quality of the fruit to decrease," Mr. Huong analyzed.

According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment, the province has more than 15,000 hectares of fruit trees, of which nearly 11,400 hectares are in the commercial period, with an average output of nearly 143,000 tons. Of the fruit trees in the commercial period, about 80% are trees for summer harvest. The Department of Agriculture and Environment recommends that gardeners proactively monitor the weather and increase the application of technical farming measures to limit damage. At the same time, apply science, technology and new techniques to create high-quality products that are competitive in the market...

Article and photos: DONG HIEU

Source: https://baobariavungtau.com.vn/kinh-te/202505/thoi-tiet-bat-loi-trai-cay-vu-he-that-thu-1041855/